Oman Air intends to apply for Oneworld membership with the help of Qatar Airways:

https://thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/2 ... membership

Interesting, though with QR and RJ already in the alliance I'm not sure what Oman Air would bring in addition?

timboflier215 wrote:

Interesting, though with QR and RJ already in the alliance I'm not sure what Oman Air would bring in addition?

It’s probably more Oman Air looking for additional feed and connectivity on the spokes of its network. Oman Air isn’t really going after the QR super connector model.

I was about to say, seems a bit redundant. But eh, another quality airline to choose from. Who's complaining!

BangersAndMash wrote:

I was about to say, seems a bit redundant. But eh, another quality airline to choose from. Who's complaining!

I've heard horrible stories about WY employees. They have a great hard product but their ground and inflight staff drag them down considerably.

usflyer msp wrote:

BangersAndMash wrote:

I was about to say, seems a bit redundant. But eh, another quality airline to choose from. Who's complaining!

I've heard horrible stories about WY employees. They have a great hard product but their ground and inflight staff drag them down considerably.

I'm surprised by that. Haven't flown them myself but I've heard overwhelmingly good things about the airline, on product and service. And MCT is a nice airport. I'd happily change planes there.

usflyer msp wrote:

BangersAndMash wrote:

I was about to say, seems a bit redundant. But eh, another quality airline to choose from. Who's complaining!

I've heard horrible stories about WY employees. They have a great hard product but their ground and inflight staff drag them down considerably.

I've flown them a few times and have never encountered anything similar to what you heard.

usflyer msp wrote:

BangersAndMash wrote:

I was about to say, seems a bit redundant. But eh, another quality airline to choose from. Who's complaining!

I've heard horrible stories about WY employees. They have a great hard product but their ground and inflight staff drag them down considerably.

Opposite to what I've heard too. Everyone who I know who has flown them, and some repeatedly, rave about their on board service and product.

I read the article, that they want to become a full member ?

Or "just" a OneWorld connect member like Fiji Airways ?

Not super surprising since QR and WY are so close already. If WY wants that global touch after covid restrictions wane, joining ow seems the way to go.
IIRC, their second largest codeshare partner is MH too. OW makes sense. They could pick up a bit of feed at places like LHR, NRT, and DME. Only thing standing in their way is their LH codeshare/partnership, but not sure how that is holding up with covid and all. I don't see any member airlines objecting to this, at least, and there's no good reason why they shouldn't if they're willing to pay dues.

I flew them once in business class and they were pretty good, but less streamlined as the big guys like QR and EK. For me they are welcome, more opportunities. I hope EY will join an alliance too, Star has little in the mid east.

Hopefully this turns into oneworld (Connect) membership for Oman Air.
While many here dispute the relevance of alliances- on a personal note, I find myself preferring to fly on carriers that have a partnership with the AAdvantage program, which usually leads to me seeking out oneworld partners. I wouldn't inconvenience my travel greatly to stick to oneworld but I am usually prepared to add one connection or pay slightly more to remain 'loyal' which allows me to enjoy the perks of being AAdvantage Platinum.

Hopefully Oman Air is the first of a few to expand the alliance-

RwandAir which I believe has a direct QR investment in the airline and the country's Bugesera International Airport would be a great addition to expand intra-African connectivity.
Perhaps GOL in Brazil with AA's latest investment.
I wonder if China Southern would ever join?

Cheers,
AA1818

cityshuttle wrote:

I read the article, that they want to become a full member ?

Or "just" a OneWorld connect member like Fiji Airways ?

I would say they will go for the full membership, nothing suggests otherwise.
They are many times bigger than Fiji Airways. They are bigger than Royal Jordanian.

aa1818 wrote:

While many here dispute the relevance of alliances- on a personal note, I find myself preferring to fly on carriers that have a partnership with the AAdvantage program, which usually leads to me seeking out oneworld partners. I wouldn't inconvenience my travel greatly to stick to oneworld but I am usually prepared to add one connection or pay slightly more to remain 'loyal' which allows me to enjoy the perks of being AAdvantage Platinum.

And that is the reason alliances are staying. Quite a lot of people who have a frequent flyer card only have one and will stick to their alliance like glue to maximise their benefits. People only say alliances are dead because there have been more joint ventures lately and hardly any airlines joining alliances. The fact that a) alliances don't need to constantly grow to be relevant and b) that most airlines are in alliances seems to escape most people.

Hope Oman Air do join, I'd love to try them!

Tbh I am surprised Star Alliance never courted WY, given they have a big gap in the Gulf region. I would have thought WY would have been a perfect choice for Star Alliance, its only other member in the region being Egypt Air. (and doesn't LH codeshare with WY?)
But either way, WY is a great addition to any alliance - great cabin service, good reputation, a new Muscat airport, and the prospect of a stop over in beautiful Oman. The natural charms Oman has to offer (friendly people, culture, scenery, beaches) trumps the fake glitz of Dubai anytime.

Same. I've flown them a couple of times and connected in MCT and it was all fine, very pleasant experiance.

Not sure what they bring to OneWorld though tbh, but as someone else said, why not!

eta unknown wrote:

usflyer msp wrote:

BangersAndMash wrote:

I was about to say, seems a bit redundant. But eh, another quality airline to choose from. Who's complaining!

I've heard horrible stories about WY employees. They have a great hard product but their ground and inflight staff drag them down considerably.

I've flown them a few times and have never encountered anything similar to what you heard.

Looks like Oman Air was serious when they said they are planning to join oneworld. Planning for end of 2022 (but often these things take longer than planned). Info from an interview with the CEO:-

https://samchui.com/2022/01/04/intervie ... dRQnBZOkWM

Oman Air has several code-share agreements, but not all of them will remain once the carrier is able to join the alliance. “Some of the code-shares are very good, some which are not so cooperative we will get out of it“, he said.

Earlier plans that Oman Air operates its own flights to the US have been skipped and will be not continued for now. “We will serve the US via Doha with Qatar Airways. Oman Air is also working closely with American Airlines via London and on to other US destinations“, Al Raisi explained.

Thirdly, talking about the competition in the Gulf region itself, he said Oman Air is different compared to the other three main ones (Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad), as it is focusing on point-to-point traffic. “As tourism is so important for our country and Oman Air is promoting also the destination, in the future we will have less focus on the transfer business at our hub in Muscat“, Al Raisi added.

If Oman Air wants to focus on point-to-point traffic instead of transfer pax... then why does it need to join a major alliance and incur all the huge costs ? Could they not just set up codeshares with a few specific airlines as a significantly cheaper option ?

davidjohnson6 wrote:

If Oman Air wants to focus on point-to-point traffic instead of transfer pax... then why does it need to join a major alliance and incur all the huge costs ? Could they not just set up codeshares with a few specific airlines as a significantly cheaper option ?

Essentially, it looks as though if you want to be considered a real international airline, you join an alliance. Frequent flyers will only fly non-aligned airlines if they absolutely have to. They will even take routes with stops to earn points.

I'll be delighted to see Oman Air in oneworld, I've only heard good things about them.

China Southern withdrew from an alliance, yet has over 600 aircraft. Southwest in the USA has never joined an alliance. Emirates seems quite happy outside an alliance

I'm still not convinced about the need for Oman Air to join an alliance, constrain their operational flexibility and spend all the money both in preparation and in annual fees, especially when there is a megacarrier based in Qatar, 1 hour flying time away from Oman's home in Muscat.
This all looks to me quite similiar to LOT joining Star Alliance, but Lufthansa gaining a lot of the benefits

While I applaud the intention to bring Oman Air into OW, I think they need to fill the void left by LATAM and focus on the Chinese market. Perhaps they should pursue GOL or even Avianca to leave *A and join OW.

ClassicLover wrote:

davidjohnson6 wrote:

If Oman Air wants to focus on point-to-point traffic instead of transfer pax... then why does it need to join a major alliance and incur all the huge costs ? Could they not just set up codeshares with a few specific airlines as a significantly cheaper option ?

Essentially, it looks as though if you want to be considered a real international airline, you join an alliance. Frequent flyers will only fly non-aligned airlines if they absolutely have to. They will even take routes with stops to earn points.

I'll be delighted to see Oman Air in oneworld, I've only heard good things about them.

I'd say it goes further than that. Concentrating on P2P and joining an alliance are not mutually exclusive. An alliance opens up a vastly larger network than your typical codeshare agreement to boost your tourism industry, except I guess if you're a true codeshare slut like PG, or like AS was. But even then, as AS pointed out when they joined OW, alliance relationships are virtually always prioritised over a simple codeshare partner.

But yes, brilliant news. Looking forward to give them a try.

davidjohnson6 wrote:

China Southern withdrew from an alliance, yet has over 600 aircraft. Southwest in the USA has never joined an alliance. Emirates seems quite happy outside an alliance

I'm still not convinced about the need for Oman Air to join an alliance, constrain their operational flexibility and spend all the money both in preparation and in annual fees, especially when there is a megacarrier based in Qatar, 1 hour flying time away from Oman's home in Muscat.
This all looks to me quite similiar to LOT joining Star Alliance, but Lufthansa gaining a lot of the benefits

The three airlines you mentioned are large enough to go it alone or in the case of EK and CZ have selective partnerships to expand their coverage. WN is it's own creature and occasionally flirts with partnerships but not at the moment, though who knows what they could announce tomorrow.

Oman could go the selective route but having some big friends greatly enhances their network reach, so it must seem like a good idea to them, especially in these uncertain times.

davidjohnson6 wrote:

China Southern withdrew from an alliance, yet has over 600 aircraft. Southwest in the USA has never joined an alliance. Emirates seems quite happy outside an alliance

I'm still not convinced about the need for Oman Air to join an alliance, constrain their operational flexibility and spend all the money both in preparation and in annual fees, especially when there is a megacarrier based in Qatar, 1 hour flying time away from Oman's home in Muscat.
This all looks to me quite similiar to LOT joining Star Alliance, but Lufthansa gaining a lot of the benefits

CZ is not yet in oneworld only because of CX. It is not as if they really think they are so much better off going alone. Either way, I see CZ ending up in oneworld sooner rather than later, as CX figures out its future.

Emirates was first invited to join oneworld before QR was, and they passed it on. I am sure EK now regrets that decision, being unsuccessful in courting AA codeshare for a long time, and having lost AS to QR. QR is taking full advantage of that and quickly surpassing EK on frequency and capacity to many routes to the US. Their only bright spot is the JV with QF, but that is now only a shadow of what it was, with QF having dropped DXB altogether.

LOT joining Star was years ago, when Qualiflyer airlines simply followed Swiss and folded into Star. If they were to join an alliance now, it will obviously not be Star.

But that being said, yes - oneworld does not really need Oman Air. But that does not mean Oman Air does not need oneworld to expand its presence. Neither does it hurt oneworld to have them.

aa1818 wrote:

Hopefully this turns into oneworld (Connect) membership for Oman Air.
While many here dispute the relevance of alliances- on a personal note, I find myself preferring to fly on carriers that have a partnership with the AAdvantage program, which usually leads to me seeking out oneworld partners. I wouldn't inconvenience my travel greatly to stick to oneworld but I am usually prepared to add one connection or pay slightly more to remain 'loyal' which allows me to enjoy the perks of being AAdvantage Platinum.

Hopefully Oman Air is the first of a few to expand the alliance-

RwandAir which I believe has a direct QR investment in the airline and the country's Bugesera International Airport would be a great addition to expand intra-African connectivity.
Perhaps GOL in Brazil with AA's latest investment.
I wonder if China Southern would ever join?

Cheers,
AA1818

As an Aussie loyal to QF-FF and having flown Oman Air and loved it, this is exciting news. Hopefully some interesting connections to burn points on via Asia.

OneWorld deffs needs some more coverage in China, and Africa - was a shame they lost LA too. RewandAir is an interesting opportunity, and with Al Baker as head off oneworld he has flagged he’s keen to see the alliance expand - I’d say we’ll see Rewand join. CZ could be interesting- but from a pax point they need to do more to improve their consistency of service, and hard product,

cybergus wrote:

While I applaud the intention to bring Oman Air into OW, I think they need to fill the void left by LATAM and focus on the Chinese market. Perhaps they should pursue GOL or even Avianca to leave *A and join OW.

Agree on LATAM, especially with AA being the dominant American carrier there. I also think they need a partner in Central/Eastern Europe to replace AB. Or AA needs directs into Germany without forcing us through LHR or MAD.

But welcome, WY!

cybergus wrote:

While I applaud the intention to bring Oman Air into OW, I think they need to fill the void left by LATAM and focus on the Chinese market. Perhaps they should pursue GOL or even Avianca to leave *A and join OW.

It is difficult to talk about a void when 11 of the 14 oneworld members still have bilateral codeshare and FF partnerships with LATAM. LATAM essentially just swapped AA for DL to get a JV and kept most of the remaining partners intact. It will take some time for DL to force LA to cut off relationships with OW members one by one. Expect the process to be similar to how DL forced SkyTeam members to cut off relationships with AS. Till then, I don’t see any changes happening.

I wish Oman Air would join Star. Star has a big gap in middle east and Oman serves many destinations in India and surrounding countries which the European carriers or UA do not serve. Star should court Oman. One world already has QR which mostly duplicates what WY does in that neighborhood.

onwFan wrote:

cybergus wrote:

While I applaud the intention to bring Oman Air into OW, I think they need to fill the void left by LATAM and focus on the Chinese market. Perhaps they should pursue GOL or even Avianca to leave *A and join OW.

It is difficult to talk about a void when 11 of the 14 oneworld members still have bilateral codeshare and FF partnerships with LATAM. LATAM essentially just swapped AA for DL to get a JV and kept most of the remaining partners intact. It will take some time for DL to force LA to cut off relationships with OW members one by one. Expect the process to be similar to how DL forced SkyTeam members to cut off relationships with AS. Till then, I don’t see any changes happening.

Yup, however such relationships like you just mentioned are going to be cut little by little and more over there are a portion of alliance benefits that were already slashed as soon as they left OW. In the current panorama, JV are becoming more the trend but there is a small part of benefits at a glance that only being a part of an alliance gives to the FF.

bval wrote:

cybergus wrote:

While I applaud the intention to bring Oman Air into OW, I think they need to fill the void left by LATAM and focus on the Chinese market. Perhaps they should pursue GOL or even Avianca to leave *A and join OW.

Agree on LATAM, especially with AA being the dominant American carrier there. I also think they need a partner in Central/Eastern Europe to replace AB. Or AA needs directs into Germany without forcing us through LHR or MAD.

But welcome, WY!

100% agree with you. Malev and Air Berlin played a small role but nevertheless an important one. The only problem is with the current situation, which airline east of Germany can fill such void?

cybergus wrote:

bval wrote:

Agree on LATAM, especially with AA being the dominant American carrier there. I also think they need a partner in Central/Eastern Europe to replace AB. Or AA needs directs into Germany without forcing us through LHR or MAD.

But welcome, WY!

100% agree with you. Malev and Air Berlin played a small role but nevertheless an important one. The only problem is with the current situation, which airline east of Germany can fill such void?

There really isn't an option other than LH, and they aren't going to leave *A. Nor would IAG be very happy to see them as a partner.

The best option is really AA adds from JFK direct to BER on a 788 (whenever those start delivery again). Probably not wise to go head to head with LH's hubs in FRA and MUC. IIRC the last AA flights to TXL were from PHL. They should lean into the NEA and offer them out of JFK T8.

bval wrote:

cybergus wrote:

bval wrote:

Agree on LATAM, especially with AA being the dominant American carrier there. I also think they need a partner in Central/Eastern Europe to replace AB. Or AA needs directs into Germany without forcing us through LHR or MAD.

But welcome, WY!

100% agree with you. Malev and Air Berlin played a small role but nevertheless an important one. The only problem is with the current situation, which airline east of Germany can fill such void?

There really isn't an option other than LH, and they aren't going to leave *A. Nor would IAG be very happy to see them as a partner.

The best option is really AA adds from JFK direct to BER on a 788 (whenever those start delivery again). Probably not wise to go head to head with LH's hubs in FRA and MUC. IIRC the last AA flights to TXL were from PHL. They should lean into the NEA and offer them out of JFK T8.

LOT would be a good candidate. It’s network in Eastern Europe was fairly strong with WAW hub and focus city in BUD. They are in Star Alliance but left out of the Transatlantic joint venture agreement thingy. But they use the LH frequent flyer scheme so that’s the difficult part to separate. The only way I see it happening is if IAG made a bid and would bring them into Avios.

timboflier215 wrote:

Interesting, though with QR and RJ already in the alliance I'm not sure what Oman Air would bring in addition?

They bring value, in quality, added capacity, and more importantly, OW gets them before Star and Sky.

Sometimes it's just about stopping, slowing, or limiting the competitor in ways that people on here do not consider. Also another way to stick it to EK...paper cuts.

Having flown Oman Air CDG-MUC-BOM-MUC-CDG in J. They are miles above EK in overall service on the ground and in the air.

cityshuttle wrote:

I read the article, that they want to become a full member ?

Or "just" a OneWorld connect member like Fiji Airways ?

I think they should just apply to OneWorld connect instead like Fiji does.

onwFan wrote:

It is difficult to talk about a void when 11 of the 14 oneworld members still have bilateral codeshare and FF partnerships with LATAM. LATAM essentially just swapped AA for DL to get a JV and kept most of the remaining partners intact. It will take some time for DL to force LA to cut off relationships with OW members one by one. Expect the process to be similar to how DL forced SkyTeam members to cut off relationships with AS. Till then, I don’t see any changes happening.

DL hasn't been successful (yet) in pulling KE out of the AS partner list. I suppose it's a matter of time but I'd love to see them stay. They're nowdays one of only two realistic bookable options for AS members to Asia (along with JL). Booking anything on SG with AS miles is pretty much impossible and I'm not sure how much longer CX can hang on.

cybergus wrote:

100% agree with you. Malev and Air Berlin played a small role but nevertheless an important one. The only problem is with the current situation, which airline east of Germany can fill such void?

Air Serbia has a decent offering and network for that part of the world.

aa1818 wrote:

Hopefully this turns into oneworld (Connect) membership for Oman Air.
While many here dispute the relevance of alliances- on a personal note, I find myself preferring to fly on carriers that have a partnership with the AAdvantage program, which usually leads to me seeking out oneworld partners. I wouldn't inconvenience my travel greatly to stick to oneworld but I am usually prepared to add one connection or pay slightly more to remain 'loyal' which allows me to enjoy the perks of being AAdvantage Platinum.

Hopefully Oman Air is the first of a few to expand the alliance-

RwandAir which I believe has a direct QR investment in the airline and the country's Bugesera International Airport would be a great addition to expand intra-African connectivity.
Perhaps GOL in Brazil with AA's latest investment.
I wonder if China Southern would ever join?

Cheers,
AA1818

And when will Philippine Airlines(last major ASEAN carrier that has no alliance yet) finally join Oneworld?
and lastly Aerolineas Argentinas will jump ship from Skyteam to Oneworld? - former Oneworld member LATAM has not yet join Skyteam yet....

hohd wrote:

I wish Oman Air would join Star. Star has a big gap in middle east and Oman serves many destinations in India and surrounding countries which the European carriers or UA do not serve. Star should court Oman. One world already has QR which mostly duplicates what WY does in that neighborhood.

More likely Etihad will join Star.

RDRogel wrote:

aa1818 wrote:

Hopefully this turns into oneworld (Connect) membership for Oman Air.
While many here dispute the relevance of alliances- on a personal note, I find myself preferring to fly on carriers that have a partnership with the AAdvantage program, which usually leads to me seeking out oneworld partners. I wouldn't inconvenience my travel greatly to stick to oneworld but I am usually prepared to add one connection or pay slightly more to remain 'loyal' which allows me to enjoy the perks of being AAdvantage Platinum.

Hopefully Oman Air is the first of a few to expand the alliance-

RwandAir which I believe has a direct QR investment in the airline and the country's Bugesera International Airport would be a great addition to expand intra-African connectivity.
Perhaps GOL in Brazil with AA's latest investment.
I wonder if China Southern would ever join?

Cheers,
AA1818

And when will Philippine Airlines(last major ASEAN carrier that has no alliance yet) finally join Oneworld?
and lastly Aerolineas Argentinas will jump ship from Skyteam to Oneworld? - former Oneworld member LATAM has not join Skyteam yet....

One more question - will MH(Malaysia Airlines) survive? It is nothing but a fraction of it was a good carrier(before the two major disasters of 2014 - both are 777's)